The incredible £2.5bn tower set to be the tallest in world’s ‘friendliest country’ | World | News
A new super-tall skyscraper is under construction in Japan, which has been named one of the world’s “friendliest countries” by Conde Nast in the past. The skyscraper will be the tallest building in the country.
Torch Tower, which is under construction in Tokyo, is expected to be 385 meters high, surpassing the Azabudai Hills Mori JP Tower, which is 325.2 meters and is currently Japan’s tallest skyscraper. The incredible building is located in the Tokyo Torch district, which is a redevelopment of the Tokiwabashi district near Tokyo Station.
The project, whose construction started in September 2025, is planned to be completed in March 2028. The project is being developed by Mitsubishi Estate, one of Japan’s largest real estate developers.
Designed by architects Mitsubishi Jisho Sekki, Sou Fujimoto Architects and Yuko Nagayama Associates, the skyscraper will have a total of 67 floors, 62 above ground and 4 below ground.
Floors 7 through 52 are planned for offices, while the upper floors are reserved for a luxury hotel and an observation deck where visitors can view iconic sights such as Tokyo Bay and Mount Fuji, Japan’s highest mountain.
The building can also be used for events as it has a large hall that can accommodate up to 2,000 people.
The building’s name was chosen in the hope that the skyscraper would “illuminate Japan” and thus the building’s exterior would feature a torch-inspired design.
While the expected height of the tower is still far from Burj Khalifa, the total area of Torch Tower is set to exceed the area of the world’s tallest building by almost two orders of magnitude.
The entire construction of the building is expected to cost around ¥500bn, or around £2.5bn.
The structure is part of the broader Tokyo Torch project, which is “a large-scale, mixed-use redevelopment project covering an area of 3.1 hectares,” according to the official website. The project aims to redevelop the buildings over a 10-year period.
The Tokyo Torch district also includes another skyscraper, Tokiwabashi Tower, which was completed in June 2021.
